The rear end of the gas tank, the part where it is hidden under the seat had a few chipped parts since I bought it and recently I noticed a few tiny ones appear on the lower sides of the tank and frame covers.

Anyhow, since I love the bike and would like to keep it looking purrrtty, I am thinking about getting matching touch-up paints.

So, here goes the question; has anyone used any matching touch-up or brush on colors to fix minor scratches or chips on their bike?

Mine is a 2007 Vulcan Custom with plasma blue paint. According to ColorRite, mine needs primer, base paint and top paint (http://www.colorrite.com/matrix-colo...TOKEN=97644837), then a highly recommended clear coat. I know this deep metallic color could require two layers but do I really need to use a primer or clear coat on top of the top layer paint which is supposed to act like a clear coat?

Anyone used ColorRite with good results? Is there a better brand/vendor?

Any helpful info from anyone with experience will be greatly appreciated!

I was seeing mixed reviews for ColorRite aka ColorWrong so I did a bit more research and came across these guys: http://www.paintscratch.com/

Granted, finding the color for my Vulcan or for any Kawasaki was not feasible as Kawasaki is not even in the list of MC makes. I contacted them via e-mail and asked why they had OEM paint for Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha but not Kawasaki.
Service staff was very prompt in their correspondence. They were able to find the matching OEM color code for my bike (2007 Vulcan 900 Custom - Plasma Blue). If you have a different year/model/color, contact them and they might be able to comply with your request as well.

For those who have the same exact bike and color, here is how you can order:
1. Visit the site: http://www.paintscratch.com/
2. For Year, select: 2000
3. For Make, select: Fleet
4. For Model, select: PPG Paints

When ordering I spoke with the merchant and he advise that I choose the Touch Up "felt" pen. Like a magic marker. He claimed that they do not dry out, work well and last longer that the classic touch up brushes.

I ordered the felt pens. If the "nicks" are deep (you can see bear metal) than theory has it "Base Coat" is required with the suggested color (candy fire red) in my case. You can see the base coat in the paint scheme. Not often does it get to that degree. I tried with and without the base coat, the base is hard to cover. Therefore, I don't always use it. As for the clear coat, I rarely use it. As for the felt pens, they do last long. I feel more at ease with a touch up paint brush style unit, but once you get the knack it does the job and works. Touch ups IMO will always somewhat show As my dealer says, as long as your on top of it, it looks great. I find most of the nicks on the front fender and gas tank.

TurcoLoco, Yes it's an '07; I bought it in March'07 and that was the first year for the Custom. Looks to me like in '09 when they brought the color back (K Green replaced the Blue in '08) they changed the name and it must be the same color because they now list the '07 blue as plasma. When I bought mine the Kawa website listed the colors as Candy Plasma Red and Candy Sapphire Blue. But I can't prove it, all my original paperwork just says "Blue" so I'll chalk it up to old age and failing memory.

Is there any point in having a top coat for small touchups due to stone chips etc? I'd have thought not. I've got a couple on underside of tank - colour is (I think) plasma blue for 2008 (october) classic (Australian if that makes any difference). According to wiki plasma blue didn't some in until 2009 but the polaris blue(2008) looks too dark although it's hard to tell from web pictures.

TurcoLoco, Yes it's an '07; I bought it in March'07 and that was the first year for the Custom. Looks to me like in '09 when they brought the color back (K Green replaced the Blue in '08) they changed the name and it must be the same color because they now list the '07 blue as plasma. When I bought mine the Kawa website listed the colors as Candy Plasma Red and Candy Sapphire Blue. But I can't prove it, all my original paperwork just says "Blue" so I'll chalk it up to old age and failing memory.

Steve, one of the ways to ascertain the color look-up and match for your bike is to provide the company (whichever company you decided to order from) the VIN# of your bike. That would take the guess work out of the process.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fawlty99

Is there any point in having a top coat for small touchups due to stone chips etc? I'd have thought not. I've got a couple on underside of tank - colour is (I think) plasma blue for 2008 (october) classic (Australian if that makes any difference). According to wiki plasma blue didn't some in until 2009 but the polaris blue(2008) looks too dark although it's hard to tell from web pictures.

From my research, I found out, if the paint is intact and looks decent, then all you need is the clear coat to protect it. If any of the color coats damaged, faded, etc. it would be best to prep the area, re-do that coat and then finish off with the clear coat.

If it is all the way down to bare metal, then it is best to start with primer. I ordered the touch-up primer pen as well but I think if you have a spray primer, you could use a soft foam pad or even Q-tip to spray the primer on and then use that to do the priming.

Whether you will keep the bike or sell it, if it has any paint chips or scratches, I feel, it is well worth to have this type of a touch-up kit.